Tag Archives: trip planning

The New York Times Travel Show was held this past weekend at the Javits Center. I went on Sunday and now the wheels in my head are spinning to decide where to visit next!

Iceland has been at the top of the list for some time – plus their economy tanked so it’s a bargain destination. If you eliminate the Galapagos, Ecuador is also a good bargain against the dollar. Nicaragua is up and coming. Spain and Portugal weren’t in attendance but a return to Spain has been on the list for a while. Egypt had a booth and it will be a great bargain when they stop being in the news.

And if I decide to stay in the country, Maine, Oregon, the Gulf Coast and the Carolinas all seem like good places to visit.

I could go on and on and on…there’s really no where I wouldn’t consider.

No one seems to know much about where I came from. I have bits and pieces to work from. Has anyone out there been successful in tracking their ancestry? If you are related to me, even better. If you are related to me and live in a foreign land, seriously awesome.

Am heading to the birthplace of my great grandma later this week, and all I have is a copy of her original birth certificate (though I realize this is an awesome start). There’s an immigration museum in Buenos Aires but it would have been her parents that immigrated there. But lacking lots of info like possible years they came, from where (conflicting reports within my family) and how (I assume steerage on a ship unless there’s some kind of royalty lineage – doubtful).

Know I also have family that came from Eastern Europe and Russia but they had such common surnames that it’s going to be a difficult search. Trips to those lands will not happen in the dead of winter. Need to not be wearing an ushanka (google ‘big Russian hat’ – that’s what I just did) when I go to unearth the mysteries of my family history. Am thinking more like flip flops and a sun dress. Like I will be later in the week in BsAs 🙂

‘Slow Food is a global, grassroots organization with supporters in 150 countries around the world who are linking the pleasure of good food with a commitment to their community and the environment.’ — courtesy of slowfood.com

I tried to find a Slow Food group during my last international trip but there was not an organized group in Croatia at that time.

For my upcoming trip to Argentina, I found many Slow Food groups throughout the country. I chose to email just three members based in three different cities (actually one city and two towns) that I will be visiting, including Uruguay.

Not a few hours after I sent the emails, the woman who heads up the organization in Uruguay, told me there were no Slow Food events over the time period, as it is summer vacation. However, she told me that I could come and visit her and her farm and I would be most welcome. She also recommended a local entrepreneur who is part of Slow Food who runs a restaurant in the town we are planning on visiting.

I looked at her location on the map, and for the day trip, we just wouldn’t have time to spend 4 hours each way traveling to visit her. But, what a lovely woman to invite a perfect stranger into her home for a day. And for the local restaurant, she even gave me the website and the owners name. I found out a few days ago that Uruguay leads South America in cheese consumption. The restaurant’s website is not in English so I can only partially translate. But, it has an entire page dedicated to cheese, and there is a ribbon noting an award. I think we’ve got to stop by!

Argentina – here we come! The boyfriend, who does not have the wanderlust I do, agreed to a trip to Argentina! This is not without hesitation on his part (as with every trip). Super excited.

We have the international flights in and out of Buenos Aires booked and are working on the internal flights throughout Argentina, and places to stay. The trip is three weeks from today!

I know how the boyfriend travels, and he needs a rough (but confirmed) plan. He won’t take an active role in making the plan, he just needs one. Good thing that I enjoy doing the research (and have been on it for months!). I love a happy boyfriend, so a compromise of some planning and some spontaneity it is!